What Do Russian Tortoises Eat?
I live with five Russian Tortoises, one male and four females, all of them rescues in one way or another. They’re fascinating tortoises, active, intelligent, quirky, personable, and lovely. Their diets are both simple and challenging.
They are essentially herbivorous, eating almost entirely leafy plant matter. Because of how their digestive system and gut biota has evolved over time, sugars/carbohydrates found in fruits and even many vegetables can make them sick and make internal parasites living in balance in their guts increase in number and effect. Similarly, foods too rich in protein can upset their digestive systems and adversely affect their kidneys, resulting in acute illness and/or early death.
For those reasons, the best diet for Russian Tortoises are weeds (like the dandelions pictured above, or plantago, another common lawn weed) that can be harvested by you or by them.
When weeds are unavailable, as happens in New Hampshire for many months of the year, I feed the Russians I live with mixed…
